Download videos from almost any streaming site in just one click. The Ant.com Video Downloader is an extremely simple extension for Firefox and Internet Explorer that makes downloading videos from sites like YouTube and Vimeo easy – and tries to work with every video site on the web.

Whether you want to use a clip in your own video project or simple save a video for offline viewing, sometimes you’re going to want to take a video from the web and put it on your hard drive. There are lots of site-specific tools for this, but if you want a catch-all tool for most video sites on the web, look no further than Ant. Sure, it doesn’t offer many options, but it also stays out of your way. Let’s take a look.

Downloading Videos With Ant Video Downloader

This simple button will change into a floppy disk when you watch a video. Here’s how that looks:

When the button looks this way you need only click it to download the video you’re watching. Be careful: if you’re watching a commercial you just might end up downloading the commercial, so be sure your desired video is playing before you click anything.

I tested this on YouTube and Vimeo – both worked perfectly. I would have liked a choice of format and quality, but the files I ended up with played back nicely and would be more than useable as b-roll for projects if I wanted. I also tested the plugin with a couple of more-obscure sites, just to make sure. Videos from CinemassacreThe 6 Best Angry Video Game Nerd Episodes [MUO Gaming]The 6 Best Angry Video Game Nerd Episodes [MUO Gaming]"He's gonna take you back to the past, to play the . . ." For many a gamer, this song is immediately recognizable as the theme to the Angry Video Game Nerd. After all, "he's...Read More didn’t download, so that site didn’t work. Downloading from RocketJump.com, however, worked perfectly.

Commercial sites seem to consistently fail. I tried Hulu, CBS and Fox – and ended up each time downloading the commercial no matter what I did.

If you want something simple, and you mostly download videos from popular sites like YouTube and Vimeo, this might work for you. Anyone wanting more features or control should check out the other suggestions below.

Configuring Ant

I thought I’d go over the configuration options this extension gives you. Here’s how the preferences look in Firefox:

You can set this to show up as a toolbar in the setting – don’t! You might like toolbars, but you’re wrong – they’re a waste of space. You can also move the downloader to the statusbar, if you still like statusbars. I’d stick with the button.

Below that you can change the folder where your downloads end up. Probably a good idea, but it’s up to you.

Ant offers a player, which is basically a quick way to watch the videos you’ve downloaded. That player can open in a window or a new tab – it’s up to you.

You can configure notifications, if you want. And you can stop the program from sending your download data to a central server. I’d recommend this, particularly because it’s the only way to turn off the seemingly useless “Ant Rank” button from your toolbar.

Other Video Downloading Tools

Of course, Ant is far from the only video downloading service on the web. Some are simpler; some are more complex. Let’s take a look at a few.

KeepTube is probably the simplest tool outline there, even if it only works for YouTube. Using it couldn’t be easier: you need only add the word “keep” the the front of any YouTube URL:

If you want more options than Ant Video Downloader, and don’t mind installing some software to get it, check out Freemake Video Downloader. This program allows you to paste URLs from thousands of sites and download a clean copy:

Ant is somewhere in between these two options. It’s a one-click solution, and because it’s a browser extension there’s no desktop program to worry about installing. But it’s not as complex as tools like Freemake, meaning you have less control over how it works. If you’re looking for a compromise, Ant might be for you.

Of course, it’s not for everyone. Let me know your thoughts about Ant Video Downloader below, along with any other alternatives you feel are worth mentioning.

Hi , I am using ant video downloader for past 2 months without any problem but since morning it keep saving videos in html format but I want it to save file as flv or any other format which can be accessed without net. Do you know how to fix it?

Even I'm facing same problem here . I 'm using ant video downloader more than 3 years but since 1 month when I download any video it comes in HTML format not in flv format as earlier. I'm using FireFox browser. Badly need the help.. Some here please reply me with ur suggestion

Justin Pot is a technology journalist based in Portland, Oregon. He loves technology, people and nature – and tries to enjoy all three whenever possible. You can chat with Justin on Twitter, right now.